Method of treating lacteal fluids.



'5. B. HELLER.e METHOD 0I? TREATI'NG LACTE'AL FLUIDS. APPLICATION FILEIJ JAN. I9.' I9l5l VRENEW-ED )UNE I9, 1916.

PatemedAug.27,1918.

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ERNST B. HELLER, 0F NEW YORK, 1v. Y., -AssieNora BY MEsNE AssIGNMENTaTO THE VACUUM CHURN CORPORATION, or NEW YORK, 1v. Y., A CORBORATION OE NEW YORK.

METHOD OFVTREATING LACTEAL FLUIDS.

Patented. Aug. 27, 1918.

Application led January 19, 1915, Serial No. 3,109. Renewed June 19, 1916. Serial No. 104,572.

To all whom t may concern: l

Be it known that I, ERNST B. I-IELLER, a subject of vthe Emperor of Germany, and residing at New York, in the county 0fv New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods of Treating Lacteal Fluids; and I do hereby declare the following to be av full, c] ear, and exact description of the invention,

such as will enable others skilled in the artv to which it appertains to makeand use the same. f

This invention relates tO a method of treating cream and other dairy products, and has for its objectto provide a process whichV will eliminate the yeasts and molds from, as well as increase the volatile acids in, the finished butter, thereby improving the aroma and flavor as well as the keepin qualities of said butter.

To these ends the invention consists in the novel-steps andcombinations of steps constituting my process as well as in the new product produced by said process all as will be more fully hereinafter disclosed and particularly pointed out in the claim.

Referring to the accompanying drawingl forming a part of this specification, the figure is a diagrammatic sectional view of a churn suitable for carrying out my process, although of course other mechanisms could be used.

In order that this invention may be clearly distinguished from the prior art it is said z-It is well known that the practical minimum pasteurizing temperature for milk andV cream bought in the open market, is `substantially 140 degrees F., for at that temperature the most resistant disease germ,

such for` example as the tubercle bacillus is destroyed; and that the maximum practicable pasteurizing temperature for ysaid milk and creamis substantially 149- degrees F., because above this latter temperature the cream line'that usually separates the' cream from the milk is destroyed` and consumers `suspect the milk has been skimmed.

degrees and 149 degrees F., and he must, l

, also maintain his temperatures for not less than 20 minutes, all as is prescribed in the laws of the various States.

. It is further a matter of common knowledge in pasteurizing cream for butter making by the so called holding process;a or process in which the cream is subjected to a given temperaturefora given time, that if 140 degrees F. is employed, the yeasts and molds, Oidzfum-Zctvz's, will be destroyed. But it is equally wellV known that not withstanding this fact, itk has been heretofore found to be impossible, in large scale pasteurizing operations betweenl the temperatures of 140 degrees F.V and 149 degrees F., and employing milkk and cream lbought intheopen market, toprevent such yeasts and molds from appearing in the finished butter.

It is furtherfwell known that the maximum degreeofr temperature to be actually selected when employing the holding method will in eac'hfcase, depend upon the particularuse to which the cream is to be put and the acidity ofthe cream being pas-v factory until say 161'degrees'F'. is reached.r

When pasteurizing cream for butter making by the so called fflash method, which involves only a momentary application of heat, temperatures of from 170 degrees F. to 185 degrees F. are often employed. And in the pasteurization of 'milk for the so called starters or material to be subse, quently inoculated the best results are ob# tained by holding the milk lat kk say from 180 degrees F. to 200 degrees F. for an hour. A .common practice is to cool the pasteurized cream, then inoculate it with a starter,7 and permit said cream to ripen to the desired point.

It is likewise Well recognized inthe art that while the foregoing fundamental facts are familiar to experts who are in the forefront of knowledge in this art, and that the above results can be attained under suitable laboratory conditions employing milk and cream of a constant quality, as from al well known and supervised source, yet, it is equally well recognized by said experts that as soon as one enters thefield of large scale operations, and employs and cream of widely differing qualities, such as must be done when it is bought in the open market,

then it is not possible te attain the results now to be disclosed. v tat'ed in otherwords, pi'ior to my invention no means have been known of un erringly and constantly increasing on large scales the desirable flavor or aromas of creamV and butter vderived from open market products. Nor hasany means been known of removing the undesirable odors that are constantly evolved from said products, without incurring at least a grave danger of producing an injurious effect on the cream and butter, as for example, such as the oxidation of their contained fats and thereby imparting a tallowy y or greasy flavor to said products. y

I have discovered, in fact, that may work on a 'large commercial scale,A using cream and milk of different qualities, such as is usuallybought in the open market, and if I employ a vacuum during one or more of the above mentioned operations, the following surprising results will follow I.`

(a) The objectionable odors will bel withdrawn from the cream or butter without the objectionable-injuries of oxidation which would follow if air is blown up througl'i saidv cream or butter as is now sometimes done.

rIlhe desirable'characteristic odoror aroma of butter will bey increased and its flavor greatly improved.y

(c) A butter can be 'produced on a large commercial scale from milk and cream bought in the open market and therefore having different qualities, which butter will be free from yeasts and molds, and will also loe-free' from tallowy or greasy flavors, which isnot the case whenfair blasts or wooden churns are used, as has been heretofore customary. Y c f (d) `That neither cream noi' butter will adhere to any substantial extent to a metal surface when cooled to the churning` tem perature of say from degrees F. to G2 degrees'F., and therefore the said metal surface may kbe readily and veffectually so cleaned as to absolutely avoid re-inoculation ofthe said cream, and butter during subsequent churnings. The result is that the butter and cream in subsequent operations will be just as free from objectionable germs as it was in the first operation, and therefore a uniform product can be produced on large commercial scales, a result which has not heretofore been attained, I have further found that non-adliesive surfaces of the character of porcelain, metals, vitreous surfaces, lacquered surfaces, etc., have the same non-adhesive properties for cream'and butter, when'suliciently cooled.

In `order that my eXact process may be the more clearly understood, I will nowvv brieflyy describe the churn. illustrated in the accompanying drawing which is suit-able for carrying out the process and will then point out with more particularity just how the above *sur risinO results are attained.

j ported on the hollow shaft 5 passing through the bearings 2, and also supported by the rollers 6 carried by the bearings 3. The-hollow shaft 5 is connected with a steain-supply 7, controlled by a valveS yand adapted to deliver steam into the casing or chamber 4l by means of the pipe'9. The said casing or chamber 4 is also provided with the connection 10, by means of which it may be pumped free of air or other gas. The said chamber t is further provided with an inwardly extending head l1 to which is fitted a casting provided with the circular gear 13, by which said casing may be rotated by any suitable means, not shown.

Rigid with the casting l2 is the annular member 27 adapted to receive the latches 28 carried by the cover 29 closing the opening 30 into the` interior chamber or churn 31. The said cover 29 is provided with a side opening 32, as shown. The interior chamber or churn 3l is provided with a plurality of hollow dashers 33 extending through the walls of said chamber 31 as shown. These dashers leave a space all around for the passage of the milk and thereby afford al chance for a maximum amount of milk to contact with their outer walls. The ends of these dashers are also open to the chamber -las shown so that steam or hot water isafforded a' free passage therethrough at all times and consequently if the said chamber l is kept at a" given temperature, the surfaces of vthese dashers and therefore the contacting milk will be subjected to a constant temperature. This is an important feature of my invention, for in the making of high grade butter-s under vacuum processes it is of the greatest importance to know to 'iust how high a' temperature the cream is being subjected, and'to also know for a certainty that this temperature in the cream has actually been reached. In addition to the above, my hollow dashers afford a greater surface in contact with the cream, and the eiiiciency of the churn is greatly increased.

, Leading from the inner chamber 31 is a passage 35 provided with a cover 36 `and a nipple 37' adapted to connect with an air pump, for the purpose of exhausting the air from said chamber 31.

Accordingly, I place cream in the inner chamber 3l, exhaust the air through the connection 37,A and then admit steam through the supply 7 to the outer chamber until the proper temperature has been reached to thoroughly pasteurize the cream in the chamber 3l and yet at the same time on a thermometer, I then rotate both the,

inner and outer chambers on the bearings 2 and 3 until the cream is thoroughly churned. The side opening 32 enables the operator to watch the operation and to stop it when the butter has been made.

Y During the entire operation, no air is admitted to the cream or butter,and since it was thoroughly pasteurized after having been placed in the chamber 31 and securely sealed by the cover 29, the butter is produced with its naturaliiavor,` and with no yeasts and molds therein. Accordingly, it will keep for a very much longer time than will butter which has been exposed to the air after it has been made. l'

The passage 4() around the pipe 9 serves to permit the escape of the steam or, hot water in the `chamber 4, and thesamek may be drained olf through the pipe l1,

It will now be clear from the foregoing disclosure that by subjecting cream or milk to a vacuum in chamber 31, I take advantage of the fact that the gases constituting the objectionable odors, are more volatile under a. vacuum than under normall pressure,and therefore I readily remove these odors without having to blow air through said milk and cream. I thereby avoid oxidizing to a f' greater or less extent their contained fats andv consequently avoid the production of the well known ta-llowy and greasy tastes that accompanies the present practice of re'u moving these odors by air streams.

It will further be understoodthat I have discovered the fact vthat when butter is subjected to a vacuum as above disclosed, its volatile fats are apparently split so that its volatile acid number is increased, therefore the butter has a much higher flavor or aroma, than that which has not received this vacuum treatment.

That is to say: Upon making actual tests of various samples to determine the quantity of volatile acids present I found that in every instance the actual volatile acids present from my vacuum process, were very much higher than those from the old process not employing a vacuum. For example certain runs were made and a given quantity of butt-er was taken and I found the ,following units of volatile acids presentin the vacuum process By making precisely the same tests from precisely the same quantities of butter produced under the regular method I found the following units of volatile acids present:

thus showing that in every instance there was present substantially from one to two units of volatile acids more in my butter than was normally found in butter made in the regular way, g

It will also be now clear from the foregoing disclosure that I am enabled to un erringly produce `on a large commercial scale at all times from creams bought in the n open market and therefore having differing qualities, a uniformly high grade butter absolutely free from yeasts andmolds. reason for this is as follows z-The pasteurisation of the material in the chamber 31 destroys the yeasts and molds, and the churn being of the construction disclosed can be so much more effectually cleaned or sterilized than has been heretofore possible, each new batch of material enters with certainty, a germ free chamber and is therefore not accidentally re-inoculated as has been the case heretofore.

That is to say prior to my invention it has been customary to use a plurality of containers, generally four, to carry out the butter producing operation, and the transfcr of the material from onecontainer to the other was invariably yaccoirqanied in large-scale operations by a re-iiioculation of said material before the finished butter was had. This accidental re-inoculation` Yoften occurred on account of the material coming in contact with porous or wood surfaces, during one or more of the operations, in the pores of which all the germs could not bedestroyed, and which pores therefore constituted. places of infection for succeeding batches of material. When metallic vessels were employed, they have invariably contained packings, glands, joints ".or other features which could not be thoroughly sterilized and therefore they likewise afforded breeding places for germs from which accidental reinoculations took place.

By using an apparatus such as that disclosed in the drawings, however, every portion of which may be heated to the very highest sterilizing temperatures, and which therefore affords no breeding places what ever for germs, each batch of fresh material is protected from accidental inocula-tion, and therefore the butter is of a uniform quality and free from yeasts and molds' no matter how large the quantity produced.

It will again be clear from the foregoing disclosure that the problem of keeping the The los

churn and pasteurizer absolutely sweet and clean and free from germs is greatly aided by my discovery that inpasteurizing cream in a vacuum such as above disclosed, it does not cook onto, or adhere to, or cake up, the inside metal surface of the chamber 31, as it does when the same heating process is carried out in the presence of air under at mospheric pressure.

This problem is further aidedI by another discovery that upon cooling to the churning temperature of from say degrees F. to 62 degrees F. the inside non-porous surface of chamber 81 while employing a vacuum, neither the cream nor butter vvill adhere to said inside surface to any substantial eX- tent, so it is easy to thoroughly cleanse the Same.

In other- Words, it Will now be clear that I pasteurize my cream in a metal chamber; I ripen it in the same chamber; and I churn it in the same chamber; all under a vacuumA and Without withdrawing the material from the chamber. That the churn and pasteurizer is so constructed that no germ breeding places arev possible after sterilization, and that therefore no accidental, reinoculation can occur when subsequent operations are carried on. And that the vacuum or metal surface, or both, prevent the cream and butter from sticking to said chamber during the processes of pasteurizing and churning. Another advantage of the Vacuum chamber 3l resides in the fact, that no foam is produced, and therefore the germs are not protected thereby, and are more easily destroyed. By pasteurizing, cooling, and ripening in the same chamber, one can operate ata temperature at least 3 degrees higher, vand therefore cool to a temperature at least 3 degrees higher, because the material is not heated up as When employing different containers for the above processes.

As a. result of the foregoing I produce a butter of uniform quality on large scale operations, from milk and cream bought in open markets, that has a cleaner and better flavor, a higher aroma, than has been heretof'ore possible, as Well as a butter that is free from odors and from yeasts and molds and will therefore keep longer. In fact, I have found butter made by this process to keep in cold storage for 1Q months, a result that has never heretofore' been attained by butter made on large scale operations.,

I havev found vacuums from 16 to 26 inches of mercury very efficient, but of course, other degrees of exhaustion may be employed if desired.

It is obvious that those skilled in the art may vary the details of my process Without departing from the spirit of the invention, and therefore I do not Wish to'be limited to the above disclosure except as may be required by the claim.

What I claim is:-

The process of n'xanufacturing butter and preventing its globules from sticking on the interior of the container which consists in carrying out the pa steurizing, churning and Working operations in a` rotating, partially exhausted vessel having smooth, non-porous, non-absorbent Walls; and artificially cooling said Walls to a temperature below 62o F. to prevent the formed butter from adhering thereto to an objectionable degree, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I ailix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

y ERNST'B. HELLER.

Witnesses:

Cosi-UNG ADAMS, CARRIE M.- BRENNAN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

` Washington, D. C. 

